When I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) at the age of 44, all previous assumptions about health, work, and my new romance were suddenly up for grabs. My memoir, No More Secs! Living, Laughing & Loving Despite Multiple Sclerosis, is a story of acceptance and change and a basic truth -- good health and life are fleeting, but love and humor trump all. Every second matters, a point driven home by yet another life-altering diagnosis.

How do you plan for life’s second half with a body you’ve never met before? One precarious step at a time. From the impersonal diagnosis by email to a wedding presided over by a funeral director, this is no tragic tale of woe. Like relapsing/remitting MS itself, the book alternates between the serious (“When I turn toward him, there’s a big hole where his right cheek should be.”) and the silly (“The bocce balls don't get out much.”).

No More Secs! may strike a familiar chord if you’ve got multiple sclerosis, or love someone who does. Still, it is only my story, not your story, and certainly not THE story of MS. Oh, and it’s not all about MS either. Really. That’s because life marches on whether we feel up to it or not. Mine sure did and, whether or not I’m ready, it keeps on marching. Yes, every second matters. At its very heart, this is a love story. Romantic love. Love of family. Love of life.

If you take a leap of faith and give No More Secs! a read, it is my sincere hope you come away from it on a positive note. Maybe it’ll even make you smile. Now that’s when I’ll know I’ve really done good.

Thank you.

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